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1 small yellow onion, cut into small dice (about a cup)

1 medium-size carrot, cut into small dice (about ¾ cup)

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger

2 teaspoons ground cumin

½ teaspoon turmeric

½ teaspoon salt

½ cup frozen peas, rinsed

Juice of ½ lemon

Extra oil for brushing or spraying the potatoes

SLICE THE cooled baked potatoes in half lengthwise and scoop out the insides, leaving about ¼ inch of potato in the skin. The easiest way is to hold the potato in the palm of your nonwriting hand and use a teaspoon to scoop the potato into a bowl. Go slowly and carefully so as not to break the potato, but you don’t have to be a perfectionist about it. Mash the potatoes up with the soy milk and set aside the skins.

Preheat the oven to 400°F.

Heat the peanut oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the mustard and coriander seeds. The mustard seeds should begin to pop; if they don’t pop in a minute or two, turn the heat up. Let the seeds pop for about a minute (put a lid on them so you don’t get splattered), add the onions and carrots, and sauté for 7 to 10 minutes, until the onions begin to brown.

Add the garlic and ginger, and sauté for a minute more. Add the cumin, turmeric, and salt with a splash of water, stir well, then add the potatoes, mixing everything well. Add a little extra water if it looks too dry. Cook until the potatoes are heated through, then add the peas and cook until those are heated through. Add the lemon juice to taste and stir to incorporate.

Brush the inside of the potato skins with a little bit of oil. Then scoop the filling into the skin, pressing gently to hold the filling in place.

Line the potato halves on a baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes. You can garnish with some chopped fresh cilantro, if you are so inclined, and serve.

CREOLE STUFFED PEPPERS

SERVES 8 AS A SIDE DISH OR 4 AS A MAIN

TIME: 55 MINUTES

These peppers are stuffed with a mildly spicy mixture of black-eyed peas and veggies. We don’t know that much about Southern cooking besides what we’ve gleaned from too many hours of watching the Food Network, but we used the basic herbs and spices from Creole cooking—paprika, oregano, and thyme—so we think these earn the right to be called Creole. Choose peppers that aren’t oddly shaped and that look like they would be good for cutting in half and stuffing. Serve with Messy Rice (page 118) and Hot Sauce-Glazed Tempeh (page 129). They also go well with mashed potatoes and Jalapeño-Corn Gravy (page 216).

4 large bell peppers

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 medium-size yellow onion, chopped finely

2 jalapeños, cut in half, seeded (if you don’t want too much heat), and sliced finely

1 cup finely diced carrots

4 cloves garlic, chopped finely

2 dried bay leaves

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1 teaspoon dried basil

2 teaspoons paprika (smoked paprika if you’ve got it)

3 sprigs fresh thyme

1 teaspoon salt

1 (15-ounce) can diced tomatoes

2 (15-ounce) cans black-eyed peas, drained and rinsed (about 4 cups)

¼ cup chopped fresh parsley

PREHEAT THE oven to 350°F and grease a 9 × 13-inch casserole dish with a little olive oil. Bring a large pot of water to a boil.

Cut the peppers in half lengthwise through the stem end. For aesthetic purposes, try to leave the stem intact on one side; if you can’t manage it, no love lost. Remove the seeds and membranes. Submerge the peppers in the boiling water and cover. Let them boil for 5 minutes, then drain them immediately and rinse with cold water to cool them down a bit.

Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Sauté the onions, jalapeños, and carrots for about 10 minutes. You want the veggies to brown, especially the carrots. If it looks like they are steaming rather than browning, then raise the heat a bit. Add the garlic about 5 minutes into the cooking process.

Add the bay leaves, the other herbs and spices, and the salt; sauté for 1 more minute. Add the tomatoes and peas, stir and cover, and cook for 10 minutes. If it seems too liquidy then remove the cover and cook